Delta State University: merit scholarships by ACT score
Delta State University awards automatic merit aid from a published grid crossing ACT score with GPA. Awards start at an ACT of 20 and reach $8,435 a year. Because the bands are steps rather than a slope, one point is worth nothing inside a band and the whole step at the edge of one.
Enter a score and a GPA below to see which band it actually lands in, what that band pays, and exactly how many points the next one needs.
Read this first
Delta State prints these awards per semester, so the annual figures here are the published semester amount doubled. The ACT windows on the pages leave gaps — a 27, and a 28 with a GPA under 3.75, fall between published rows — so each row is read as the floor its own "at least" wording states. The top award also requires living on campus, and a FAFSA is required for all three.
Unweighted, as the school asks for it.
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Example — an ACT 29 with a 3.60 GPA
Emerald Freshman Scholarship
$2,250 a semester ($4,500 a year) / year
About $18,000 over four years, if it renews.
There is no higher band to reach at this GPA — more points would not change the award here. They may still matter for admission, for honours programmes, or at other schools on the list.
Knowing where a score sits is the easy part. Moving it starts with knowing exactly which questions they're being missed, and why.
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The published Delta State merit aid grid
Reproduced in full from Delta State University’s own pages for the current cycle. Nothing here is estimated: where the school states a benefit rather than a figure, that is what the table says.
Freshman academic awards
Amounts as published are per semester, for up to eight semesters excluding summers. Superscores count.
Up to $4,217.50 a semester (up to $8,435 a year)
Magnolia Freshman Scholarship
ACT 28–36 · 3.75+
$2,250 a semester ($4,500 a year)
Emerald Freshman Scholarship
ACT 24–36 · 3.00+
$1,125 a semester ($2,250 a year)
Delta State Impact Scholarship
ACT 20–36 · 3.00+
| Award | With a score | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Magnolia Freshman Scholarship | ACT 28–36 · 3.75+ | Up to $4,217.50 a semester (up to $8,435 a year) |
| Emerald Freshman Scholarship | ACT 24–36 · 3.00+ | $2,250 a semester ($4,500 a year) |
| Delta State Impact Scholarship | ACT 20–36 · 3.00+ | $1,125 a semester ($2,250 a year) |
Source: Magnolia Freshman Scholarship · verified 2026-10-24
Does Delta State superscore for scholarships?
Yes. Stated on each award page: "Super Score will be used for scholarship consideration." A 26 and a 28 from two sittings is read as the 28.
“Super Score will be used for scholarship consideration”
So the number that matters here is your superscore, not your best single test. Work out your superscore and look that score up in the grid above — it may sit a band higher than the one you have been planning around.
Comparing schools? See which colleges superscore for scholarships — 66 of 501 commit to it, 52 say they do not, and the rest never say.
Delta State scholarship deadlines
| Entry term | Due |
|---|---|
| Statesman Scholarship (competitive) | January 15, 2027 |
Scores take roughly two to four weeks to arrive, and official reports sent to schools can take longer, so the last useful test date is several weeks before the printed deadline. Check which test dates still make it.
Where these numbers came from
Every figure on this page was read from Delta State University’s own published pages, linked below with the date we last confirmed them. We do not estimate a missing band or interpolate a value.
- Magnolia Freshman Scholarshipverified 2026-10-24
- Emerald Freshman Scholarshipverified 2026-10-24
- Delta State Impact Scholarshipverified 2026-10-24
- Statesman Freshman Scholarship (competitive)verified 2026-10-24
- Every amount Delta State prints is per semester; the annual figures here are those numbers doubled.
- Magnolia is "up to" $4,217.50 a semester, not a flat award.
- Magnolia requires living on campus — opting out of housing forfeits the award.
- A FAFSA is required for all three awards, and all three are full-time only.
- A 27 composite, and a 28 with a GPA between 3.00 and 3.74, fall in gaps on DSU's own pages.
- Whether the GPA is weighted or unweighted is not stated.
- The Statesman award — full tuition, room and board for eight semesters at a 3.75 and a 28 — goes to one student by application, so it is not a band here. Its recipient cannot hold other institutional scholarships.
Check before you rely on it. Grids change by entry year and schools update them without notice. This page is a reproduction with a date on it, not a guarantee, and it is not financial aid advice. ClutchACT is not affiliated with Delta State University.
Frequently asked questions
What ACT score do you need for a scholarship at Delta State?
Automatic merit aid at Delta State University starts at an ACT composite of 20, alongside the published GPA minimum, and reaches $8,435 a year at the top. The bands are steps rather than a slope, so the only score that matters is the next threshold above where you are now.
Is Delta State test-optional?
deltastate.edu returned a 403 on every attempt and third-party sources disagree, so nothing is claimed about the admission requirement here. For merit aid the answer is different: every band names a composite score. There is no GPA-only route to any of these three awards — a 4.0 with no ACT reaches none of them. Being admitted without a score and qualifying for money without a score are two separate questions.
How much is a 30 on the ACT worth at Delta State?
On Delta State's published grid for the current cycle, an ACT of 30 with a 3.6 GPA qualifies for Emerald Freshman Scholarship at $4,500 a year, about $18,000 over four years if it renews.
How much is one more ACT point worth at Delta State?
The most valuable single point on Delta State's published grid is 27 to 28, at a 3.75 GPA: it moves the award by $3,935 a year, or $15,740 across a four-year degree. The same point is worth less at other GPAs, and most points move nothing at all — the grid steps rather than slopes, which is why the only score worth aiming at is the next threshold.
Does Delta State superscore the ACT for scholarships?
Yes. Stated on each award page: "Super Score will be used for scholarship consideration." A 26 and a 28 from two sittings is read as the 28. Super Score will be used for scholarship consideration
When are Delta State scholarship deadlines?
Statesman Scholarship (competitive): January 15, 2027. The application and the official score report are both due by that date, and ACT scores take roughly two to four weeks to arrive — so the last useful test date is several weeks earlier than the deadline suggests.
Is this Delta State scholarship data current?
Every figure on this page was read from Delta State University's own published pages and last verified on 2026-10-24. The sources are linked at the bottom of the page with that date. Grids change by entry year, so check the source before relying on a figure for a decision.
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What to do next
You know what a score is worth at Delta State. The question is whether you can move it.
A grid tells you the target. It does not tell you which questions are costing the points between here and there. That takes about three minutes to find out.
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